CIPA Provisions-ES


Under the Children's Internet Protection Act (CIPA), all K-12
schools that require federal technology funding to provide Internet access must be in compliance with the requirements of this act. Schools receiving E-rate discounts are also required under the Neighborhood Children's Internet Protection Act (N-CIPA) to develop and enforce an Internet Safety Policy which addresses Internet Safety.

Because our district does receive discounts from E-rate, we were required to meet compliance under CIPA. We have also created and Internet Safety Policy.



How our district plans to comply with CIPA:
Internet users are expected to use the Internet as an educational resource. The following procedures and guidelines are used to help ensure appropriate use of the Internet at the Hometown School District.

Student Expectations in Use of the Internet
a. Students shall not access material that is obscene, pornographic, child pornography, "harmful to minors", or otherwise inappropriate for educational uses.
b. Students shall not use school resources to engage in "hacking" or attempts to otherwise compromise system security.
c. Students shall not engage in any illegal activities on the Internet.
d. Students shall only use electronic mail, chat rooms, and other forms of direct electronic communications for school-related purposes.
e. Students shall not disclose personal information, such as name, school, address, and telephone number outside of the school network.

Any violation of school policy and rules may result in loss of school-provided access to the Internet. Additional disciplinary action may be determined in keeping with existing procedures and practices regarding inappropriate language or behavior. When and where applicable, law enforcement agencies may be involved.


Staff Expectations in Use of the Internet :
a. Staff shall not use access material that is obscene or is child pornography.
Any violation of school policy may result in loss of school-provided access to the Internet. Additional disciplinary action may be determined in keeping with existing procedures and practices. When and where applicable, law enforcement agencies may be involved.


Enforcement of policy
a. Hometown uses a technology protection measure that blocks or filters Internet access to block access to some Internet sites that are not in accordance with the policy of Hometown School District.
b. The technology protection measure that blocks or filters Internet access may be disabled by a Hometown staff member for bona fide research purposes by an adult.
c. A Hometown staff member may override the technology protection measure that blocks or filters Internet access for a student to access a site with legitimate educational value that is wrongly blocked by the technology protection measure that blocks or filters Internet access.
d. Hometown staff will monitor students' use of the Internet, through either direct supervision, or by monitoring Internet use history, to ensure enforcement of the policy.


http://manila.esu10.org:8000/gems/nis/SampleInetSafetyPolicy05.pdf


Internet Safety Policy (ISP)


How our district plans to comply with ISP:
We will hold or students, teachers, and staff to the above internet guidelines that fit with CIPA and our ISP policy.


Public Meeting

The district held two public meetings addressing our Internet Safety Policy and our compliance with CIPA. The first meeting was held June 15, 2009. Our second meeting was held July 13, 2009.



Cyber bullying Provisions

Under the “Protecting Children in the 21st Century Act” school districts receiving e-rate funds “will teach about appropriate behavior on social networking and chat room web sites, as well as the dangers of cyber bullying”(2008).
The Hometown School District has created the following restrictions:
Student restrictions regarding Cyber bullying:
· Students that intentionally harass one or more students by electronic means will face disciplinary action by the administration.
· Students will not send electronic messages of harassment that will interfere with a student’s education, create a threatening environment, or disrupts the orderly operation of the school.
· Students that witness cyber bullying must report the incident to administration or face disciplinary action.
Faculty and Staff restrictions regarding Cyber bullying:

· Students that report of being cyber bullied will be handled with respect. Supervising adults will protect the student’s privacy and ensure the incident is reported to the administration.
· Faculty or staff that observes an incident of cyber bullying must report it to the administration or face disciplinary actions.

http://www.ncsl.org/default.aspx?tabid=12903